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Twitter bio at issue in NFL arbitration

As reported by ESPN, Jimmy Graham‘s Twitter bio could play a crucial role in the National Football League (“NFL”) arbitration hearing between the New Orleans Saints and Graham.

For those unfamiliar with the story, the New Orleans Saints placed a tight-end franchise tag on Graham. Under the tag, Graham must be offered a one-year contract for an amount no less than the average of the top five salaries at the player’s position for the previous year, or 120 percent of the player’s previous year’s salary, whichever is greater. By utilizing a tight-end tag, the one year contract for Graham would be $7.035 million. However, in response to the tag, Graham filed a grievance arguing that he’s more deserving of the significantly larger $12.312 million franchise tag for wide receivers.

Graham is one of the premier pass catching players in the NFL, and he argues he should be considered a receiver because he lined up as a receiver 67% of the time last season. In response, the Saints argue that Graham was drafted as a tight-end and made the Pro Bowl at that position. Notably, the Saints arguments for designating Graham as a tight-end also include the fact that Graham’s own Twitter bio lists Graham as a tight-end.

This appears to be the first instance where a social media bio is being utilized in this way during an NFL grievance hearing, and while the ultimate outcome of the hearing is unknown, the Saints’ arguments further highlight the role social media plays in today’s workplace.